Ray LaHood, the U.S. transportation secretary, announced the approval Monday of a $386 million federal loan to aid in financing the 18.8-mile Triangle Expressway, according to today’s N&O. The Triangle Expressway is a proposed toll road (the first in NC) connecting Research Triangle Park and western Wake County. The rest of the financing for the project, $615 million, will be loaned in bonds.
The grand total; $1 billion in borrowed money used on the construction, operation and maintenance of the new toll road to be paid off over the next 30 to 40 years by high tolls.
Even though efficient transportation is critical for NC industry, why borrow $1billion on road construction and make a bid for inclusion in the $8 billion federal stimulus package for a high speed rail system?
Shouldn’t we have limited our debt to one massive-spending project at a time?
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